Farewell to Golden

This will be the recap of the fantastic time Alien Invasion had with one of it’s players. From now on Golden and the team will part ways after an incredible time. But all the good things come to an end, sadly.

At the beginning of the year we asked ourselves if we want to pick up another player to use our team house to the fullest potential. At that time Golden announced his comeback until he had to join army. Back then we didn’t really know what to expect from him because he came back from the retirement. But we wanted to try having an english speaking Korean who is a well-known figure in the scene and is loved by manys. So we signed Golden until November.

During the next months he practiced a lot and grew stronger. In teamleagues and weekly cups he showed what he is capable of. Even though his results at foreign tournament like DreamHack weren’t on par, we knew that he still has it. And so he continued practicing for the WCS and got to the offline finals in Season 2 defeating Mana and Grubby. In the Round of 8 he went on to win against Vortix 3-2 and had to face San at that point. With his semfinal the team was already completely happy and content for bringing out the name of Alien Invasion in such a fashion. Sadly he lost in a very close series to San with 2-3 and his run ended for that season.

Seeing how he performed in the environment of WCS we decided to let him out of teamleagues as long as he was in the preparation phase for the Premier League groups. But now he also performed better at offline tournaments, namely DH Valencia. He first won his group stage 3 matches without dropping a map vs Elfi and Revolver. Then he went on to beat Nerchio 2-1 and then lost in a very quick series vs Leenock in which both used cheese.

From there on it was WCS EU Season 3 time. We as a team expected him to do well in this one but he blew our expectations out of the dust once again. His Ro32 group only consisted of foreign terrans which he beat with only dropping one map. In the next stage he had MMA in his group and the two foreign Protosses Mana and Welmu. We were a little afraid of his group but he continued on to the quarterfinals once more beating Welmu and MMA 2-1, advancing to the offline finals in Cologne.

With his last tournament performance in his active eSports career he went to Cologne facing Happy. Seeing his smile again which so many fans got to know after last season he went on to face Yoda after his 3-1 victory against Happy. The first day ended in a lot of smack talk between Yoda and Golden firing up the moods for the final day of WCS EU Season 3. Going into the first game Golden tried a Roach-Ling all-in with a nydus to cover the distance but Yoda was prepared for it and went on to the second game, in which he got the early advantage with a double proxy barracks and a bunker rush resulting in a lost natural expansion for Golden. After delaying the inevitable he lost the second game aswell to the solid macro of Yoda. In the last game Yoda wanted to do an all-in again but Golden kept him on his toes and scouted the early SCV. The game plan of Yoda didn’t change too much, transitioning into a Hellbat all-in which won him the game. It was sad to see Golden losing like this but reaching the semifinals once more made the whole team happy and proud to wear the purple.

It was quite an adventure having you on the team. Remembering all the good times we shared but also the fruitful discussions we had. Having you in a team benefits everyone in there. You are a determined player not minding to discuss all the topics some players would keep silence about. From sharing a bucket from KFC in Bucharest with you and Patience to presenting the Alien Invasion we know. Seeing you destroyed after your EPS loss showed us how much it matters to you. You were the perfect fit for the team and we were happy to have you. Your mentality towards eSports is the vision we share in the managment and we want to present to all our fans.Hopefully our paths will cross each other’s once more in the future. For the moment, farewell Golden. You gave us more than just a faceless Korean winning. You are the idol the foreign scene is looking for in Koreans. A smiling face that reciprocates all the feelings from defeat to winnning. Thanks for having you on our team!

Statement from our friend and spokesperson of Wardecks.com Meik:

Hello, my name is Meik aka MeikD from Wardecks.com and I would like to say goodbye to Golden! It was a pleasure to meet you and I will always remember this great time! Golden is a special person, not one of “the machine” players, he has so much emotions and shows them. We talked a lot and had so much fun, thanks for your great games and sharing so many thoughts. I really hope to see you again after the military service and there is one point, a personal point, I would like to say: “You are every time welcome to my house! A part of my heart will always be golden!”

Statement from Heiner "AiTotoro" Knüppel CEO of Ai:

I remember as it was yesterday when Golden talked to me for the first time. We just had an opening in our team and somehow he found out and applied for the position. A few talks later the contract was signed, the ticket booked and he was in Germany. I knew from the beginning his stay in our team would be only till October, but fresh blood was needed and I liked the fact alot that he is different to all the other Koreans. He was already famous, even if he didn’t win a lot. Shortly before we got him into the team we got Patience, so the plan was that Patience wins the cups and Golden entertains the community and creates a lot of fun for all. But little did I know back then. Golden became a good friend fast, trained harder as you could possible imagine and got better and better by the day. I’m sure if he wouldn’t have to go to the army, he would improve even more and would be on the top one day. You will not find a more honest person in esports. Golden is one of the few Koreans that has his own mind and even talks back when people behave strange in his eyes. Thank you Golden also for being a bridge between us Europeans and the Koreans in our Team. I wish him the best and im sure he will make his way in Life, if it is as a player, coach one day or as handsome playboy.So here my Farewell words to you Golden:“Golden, if you need a place to stay after the Army, or need a place to hide ^^, in Ai you will always have a home, stay the way you are, do your thing and I hope to see you again.Thanks for your hard work and the nice time you shared with us!!! Yours Heiner

Statement from AiRitus, Teammanager of Ai:

When Golden joined Alien Invasion it was clear, that he would be staying with us only for a year. He wanted to make the best out of this year of fulltime progaming and beyond doubt I can say, that he did the very best. Reaching WCS EU Premier round of four two consecutive times in a row, among other notable placements such as 2nd place at ESET Masters and Top 4 of ESL EPS, is an incredible achievement with which he has shown, that he belongs to the best of the best. Golden is a really hard-working person, who is putting a lot of effort in reaching his aims, thus I am sure, that he will continue to be succesful not only in playing Starcraft 2, but in whatever he wants to do. Golden, if you will get the opportunity, hopefully you will stick to eSports - there’s still a lot to come.

Statement from AiStrelok, Teamcaptain of Ai:

Golden. He is always so motivated and such a fair person. It wasn't always easy to work with him, but I learned a lot from this cooperation. Good luck, whenever you go - I wish you only the best!